Are there too few cows in the world to supply McDonald's beef burgers? No, that's not true: There are far more than enough head of cattle worldwide to supply McDonald's estimated 2.5 billion burgers served per year. If all the patties were quarter-pounders, heavier than the standard McDonald's burgers, the required 625 million pounds of beef would require about 1.25 million cows. There were 1.5 billion head of cattle worldwide in 2023, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
The claim appeared in a post and video (archived here) on X on January 26, 2025. It said:
McDonald's says it serves 2.5 billion burgers a year. This guy did the math and says there's not enough cows in the world to supply that many burgers. He has a great question.... Where are they getting the meat ?Que The Jeopardy Theme🎶🎶
This is what the post looked like at the time of writing:
(Source: X screenshot taken on Mon Feb 3 18:19:30 2025 UTC)
The video incorrectly maps out how many burgers cattle can provide. The total of 2.5 billion beef burger patties would require at most 625 million pounds of beef. On average, a cow can provide 500 pounds of beef according to the Tennessee Value Added Beef Program. Assuming the patties are all the heavier quarter-pounders, 625 million pounds of beef would require 1.25 million cows at most.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency data show 1.5 billion cows raised "specifically for meat production."
Statista's data (archived here) shows there were 1.57 billion head of cattle worldwide in 2023. That number has steadily increased over the past decade by approximately 10 million to 20 million annually.
Lead Stories asked Canfax Research Services (CRS), an independent, third-party source for cattle market information, about our calculations. This was the response it provided on February 11, 2025:
You are correct. Most patties are 0.25 lb raw. There is more than enough cattle globally to supply this. USDA FAS shows global beef production well above that.
Lead Stories found no evidence of a beef shortage. It contacted beef supply experts Meat Institute and Beef Magazine for comment. An update will be provided if a response is received.
Cows will yield different results depending on what they are fed, how they are raised, their maturity or their pregnancy status, according to an article (archived here) from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources.
The U.S. McDonald's website says that its burgers are "made with 100% pure beef" and "nothing else" other than salt and pepper. Lead Stories contacted McDonald's for comment and will provide an update if a response is received. Lead Stories could not find any record or source countering McDonald's claim of its burger contents.
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Additional Lead Stories fact checks on claims concerning McDonald's can be found here.
